Taiyou to Ciscomoon
T&C Bomber (T&Cボンバー), formerly known as Taiyo to Ciscomoon (太陽とシスコムーン), was a Japanese girl band under Hello! Project that debuted in April 1999. The group was created under the name Taiyo to Ciscomoon ("Sun and Ciscomoon"), but changed their name to T&C Bomber in March 2000. The group disbanded the same year after a final performance in Osaka, on October 9, 2000. They released multiple singles and two albums before disbanding. Members ;Shinoda Miho (信田美帆) *Born May 18, 1972 in Tokyo Shinoda has since appeared in various sports programmes, and served as a commentator on the women's gymnastics events at the 2004 Athens Olympics. ; Inaba Atsuko (稲葉貴子) *Born March 13, 1974 in Osaka After the group split up, the only artist to remain signed with Hello! Project was Atsuko Inaba. She continued performing as a dancer, and appeared in the chorus of various songs over the next nine years; however, her contract with UpFront Agency was terminated in late 2009, after both Inaba and the management decided that her career would go no further with Hello! Project—Inaba also stated that she would "like to see the world from a different angle" after being a performer for so long. ;RuRu (本多ルル) *Born March 18, 1976 in Shenyang, Liaoning, China Renamed Ruru Honda (本多 ルル?) within the group by Tsunku, she used this name officially after getting Japanese citizenship. Ruru pursued a singing career in Taiwan. She returned to Japan in 2007 with her debut solo album, "Shoshin" (初心?). ;Kominato Miwa (小湊美和) *Born February 15, 1977 in Fukushima Prefecture After leaving Hello! Project, she made her solo indies debut. She then formed a unit, called "Priest", with her younger brother Akihisa. History 1999 Taiyo to Ciscomoon debuted in April 1999. Its four members (Inaba Atsuko, RuRu, Shinoda Miho, and Kominato Miwa) were chosen on the TV show ASAYAN in their San Francisco auditions. They released six singles and an album that year. Kominato left the group before their sixth single, but rejoined shortly afterwards. For three weeks from February to March 1999, ASAYAN covered the members’ journeys. Tsunku sent them on this journey since he believed that each member had yet to improve before allowing them to record. Inaba was sent to Atlanta, Georgia (famous for gospel and soul, where Babyface and Whitney Houston have trained). Kominato was sent to Detroit, Michigan (famous for Motown, where the Jackson 5 and Stevie Wonder started out). Shinoda was sent to Memphis, Tennessee (famous for southern blues music, and the music of rock icon Elvis Presley). RuRu was sent to Chicago, Illinois (famous for “Chicago Blues” and songs with great rhythm). 2000 In 2000, the group changed their name to T&C Bomber and released two more singles and another album. The group was disbanded in October of 2000 after their final performance in Osaka. Since their breakup, Inaba Atsuko has remained a part of Hello! Project. Some of T&C Bomber’s singles have been performed in Hello! Project concerts, usually by Inaba Atsuko and other singers. Some of their songs have also been performed by other H!P artists as coupling songs. 2008 Eight years later in 2008, the group came back together in order to celebrate their ten year anniversary and the release of their best of album. The only member to not attend was RuRu for unknown reasons but has been posting in the group’s blog. 2009 The band reformed in early 2009, after one of the group's former members posted a blog suggesting a reformation for a limited time to celebrate the group's ten year anniversary, and the release of their new greatest hits album. Their first official reunion was on January 9, 2009 in Shibuya. In March of that year, the group called for fans to sign a petition for a 10th anniversary live performance. In 2 months, the petition received more than 2,200 signatures. Their final live performance took place in October; however, Ruru did not take part in the performance due to scheduling conflicts with her live concerts in Japan. Afterwards, the group's official blog was ended, though it was not taken down and was occasionally updated with information about the members (though has since been removed from the Oricon site). Trivia * Taiyo to Ciscomoon was known as a unique group because of the style of their music. Their songs were either dance songs full of rhythm or jazz/soul inspired songs full of heavy vocals. *They were also unique in how they were trained: They were each sent to four different U.S. cities, famous for their unique styles of music and singers they have produced, to work on their vocals and dance. Discography Albums Singles DVDs Television External links *"Announcement Regarding Atsuko Inaba" (in Japanese). Hello! Project. 2010-02-19. *Rankings Archive" (in Japanese). http://ranking.oricon.co.jp. Retrieved 2007-06-01. *Official Taiyo to Ciscomoon discography page at Up-Front Works Official Website *Taiyo to Ciscomoon/T&C Bomber lyrics at Projecthello.com Category:T&C Bomber Category:1999 Units Category:2000 disbanded Category:Zetima Category:Groups featured on Utaban Category:Groups featured in Hello! Morning Category:Groups